Tea bag disposers



Jan; 14, 1969 L. w. ROSEN TEA BAG DISPOSERS Filed Aug. 15, 1967INVENTOR.

United States Patent 7 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A protectivedevice against drippings from a steeped tea bag on outer surfaces whilebeing transferred by its string from a cup, consisting of a mountableplatform leading to an integrated well along its path for the receptionof such bag, concentrically adjustable at its front end on a top edge ofsaid cup, the rear end of which being shaped as a handle for manuallysupporting said device in operative position, with means thereon for thecentral guidance of said bag through such string while being slidablywithdrawn from said cup in the course of such transfer.

My invention relates to the use of the conventional tea bag for brewingtea in a cup or the like, involving the insertion of the bag, in a drystate, in the liquid contents of such cup by means of a dangling stringattached to said bag, and finally removing it therefrom by the samemeans, this time in a very saturated state and with consequent drippingsfrom said bag that could stain some outside surface such as that of atable cloth that may be susceptible to such damage, or that couldotherwise create some mess, and which disclosure would protectivelyavoid all these consequences.

The object of my invention is to provide a handy device that wouldsafeguard those drippings while the bag is being removed from the cupafter sufficient brewing has been accomplished, so that none of it willspill anywhere except in a complemental well or enclosure forming partof said device. A further object is to include in such device aco-existing removal method, available to one with unsteady hand, wherebysaid bag may, instead, he slid from said cup to such well in apulley-like operation by means of the conventional string being pivotedaround centralized lugs in alignment with said well, rather than liftedby said string for the purpose of such transfer, with resultant tendencyof the bag to dangle and get out of precise control when manipulated inthe latter way. A further object is to have such device of light weightand inexpensive construction, and of such form whereby it can be stampedor molded through one operation, preferably out of plastic, such form toencompass a flat bottom for table rest when not in use in addition to asuitable handle for manipulation or hanging purpose.

Other features of my invention and of the application thereof, andfurther details of my improvement will be set forth as thisspecification proceeds. It is understood, however, that the invention isnot limited to this particular disclosure, but is susceptible of manychanges and modifications which may be made by those skilled in the artwithout departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

For a more particular description of my invention, reference is to behad to the accompanying drawings, forming part hereof, in which FIG. 1is a plan view of my device showing it in operational position over thetop edge of a cup, the latter being depicted in fragmentary formsufficient to reveal the overlapping arrrangement between the two, andshowing also through broken lines the location of a tea bag inside thewell, with its string in centrally guided position between lugs in therear thereof.

Patented Jan. 14, 1969 ICC FIG. 2 is a vertical section taken along theline 2-2 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 3 is a horizontal section taken along the line 33 of FIG. 1.

FIG. 4 is a plan view of my device in fragmentary form sufficient toshow a variation in the area surrounding the well 9, whereby the shallowbead 22,. in juxtaposition with the top of the wall 10, is here made toreach from the left partition 2 to the right partition 3 as extraprecaution in completely fencing in any stray drippings, the intentionbeing that this illustrated variation takes in a similar provision injuxtaposition with the top of the wall 11.

FIG. 5 is a plan view of my device, also in fragmentary form, sufiicientto show an alternate variation for containing any stray drippings, inthis instance by means of having the entire platform 1, from itsconcentric end and as far up as the bottom of the handle 4, slope allaround toward the well 9, as illustrated by part 1A, so as to provide asort of shallow funnel for directing those drippings toward said well.This slope can easily be effected in the contour of a mold cast for theproduction of this device, while yet maintaining the basic design of mydevice in all of the parts disclosed herein.

Throughout the drawings, similar reference characters indicate similarparts.

In the accompanying drawings my device consists of the platform 1,otherwise shown as 1A in the modification depicted in FIG. 5, integratedwith which platform is the left partition 2 and the right partition 3.At the upper end of said platform, and in elongation thereof, is thehandle 4, on which appear the bifurcated and centrally aligned lugs 5and 6, the former on the left and the latter on the right, uniformlyfashioned out of said handle and sufficiently freed to have themupturned as respectively shown in FIG. 1 and illustrated in FIG. 2. Atthe lower end of said platform is the terminal 7, arced as shown inconcentric relation to a side portion of a conventional cup, havingalong its entire distance the under-lip 8 substantially at right anglesthereto as clearly shown in FIG. 2. Leading downwardly from saidplatform is the well 9, formed by the upper wall 10, the lower Wall 11,the left wall 12, the right wall 13 and the flat bottom 14. As shown inFIGS. 1 and 2 the said device is designed, by its concentric terminal,to overlap through its entire distance a corresponding arc of the topedge 15 of the cup 16, with the lip 8 on the inside of the cup as shownin FIG. 2.

The tea bag assembly, shown in broken lines for illustrative purposeonly, consists of the bag proper 17, its string 18 attached to the bagat one end thereof by the staple 19, and attached at its other end by asimilar staple 20 to a conventional advertising card 211. In FIG. 4 isshown the horizontal head 22 alongside the top of the wall 10, thepurpose of which is fully explained in a description of said figure asappears above. For hanging purpose I have provided the hole 23 at thetop of the handle 4.

In connection with the use of this device it is to be noted that thebifurcation of the lugs 5 and 6, in the position as shown, permits oneto mount the string 18 either from the right or from the left, and yethave it in either instance in central alignment with the well 9 so faras the directional pull is concerned for sliding the bag into said well.This convenience should inure to the benefit of those who are right orleft handed, as the case may be. In the illustration of tea bag andstring shown by broken lines in FIG. 1, the mounting of the string hasbeen from direction over the plug 5, leaving the free end of the stringin loose position on the right side of said handle. It is obvious thatreversely such mounting could be from directo fully contact the top edgeof tion over the plug 6, in which case the free end of the string wouldbe in loose position on the left side of said handle. In eitherinstance, as mentioned, the directional pull on the bag remains incentral position. It is also to be noted, from reference to FIG. 2, thatthe depth of the well 9 is less than that of the cup, obviously topermit the overlapping portion at the lower end of the platform 1 saidcup as shown in said figure.

While I have shown and described one embodiment of my invention, it isobvious that it is not restricted thereto, but is broad enough to coverall structures that come within the scope of the annexed claims.

Having described my invention, what I claim is:

1. A disposer for conventional tea bags, comprising a platform with alower end adapted to concentrically overlap the top edge of a cup or thelike, a well surrounded by walls leading downwardly from said platformand located rearward of said end, of suflicient capacity to house one ormore of said tea bags, and a handle in the rear of said well andplatform to facilitate any manual manipulation of said disposer,principally in placing and keeping it in operational position with saidcup for withdrawing said bag to the confines of said well after brewagewith the former has taken place.

2. In a disposer as described in claim 1 Where said well is partitionedoff at the top of said platform to confine any stray drippings from saidbag within such enclosure.

3. In a disposer as described in claim 1 where sloping means areemployed to cause drainage into said well of any stray drippings left onsaid platform from said bag in the course of transferring it into saidwell.

4. In a disposer as described in claim 1 where upper lugs are employedon a level with said platform and above and in central relation to saidwell, as a means for pivoting the conventional string on said bag forconsummating its withdrawal from such cup without lifting said bag butrather, through pulley-like action, by a sliding operation thereof overthe contacting surface of said platform.

5. In a disposer as described in claim 1 where said well is less indepth than that of the conventional cup and where its bottom is flat forpositioning purpose when not in use.

6. In a disposer as described in claim 1 where its concentric end has anunder-lip for the prevention of accidental shifting of said end from itsoverlapping position on said cup in the process of transferring said bagfrom the inside of said cup to the confines of said well.

7. In a disposer for conventional tea bags comprising a platform with ahandle in the rear thereof, a pair of lugs on said handle carved out ofits material in bifurcated formation for optionally sliding said bagafter brewage from the inside of a cup into the confines of a well bymeans of operating the conventional string attached to said bag inpulley-like fashion through pivotal action thereof at the site of saidlugs, the said string being centrally mountable on said lugs either fromthe right or left direction, and said well being centrally aligned andin lower position in relation thereto and of a capacity to freely admitone or more of said bags into its confines, the said platformsurrounding said well being peripherly partitioned OE and sloped in thedirection of the latter as a guard against stray drippings from said bagexcept in the direction of said well and its lower end being concentricin form with an under-lip along said form substantially at right anglesthereto to fit in fixed position over a corresponding distance on thetop edge of such cup.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 2,083,193 6/1937 Grassiani 992952,484,461 10/1949 Perry 99-295 FOREIGN PATENTS 116,016 l/1930 Austria.

ROBERT W. JENKINS, Primary Examiner.

